There are a lot of ways to eat healthier on a budget, but it takes a little extra planning and effort.
I've eaten healthy and not on large budgets, and small ones. Buying in bulk can help (you just have to do the math, because sometimes bulk doesn't save you any money).
If you search the forums on "budget," you'll find a lot of discussions we've had on ways to save money. There are great money-saving books and websites (I love the Tightwad Gazette three-volume book). Not all the tips are healthy- or weight-loss friendly, but many can be adapted.
Foods that tend to be the most economical (if not bought pre-cleaned and cut) generally (regardless of where yo live) include dried beans, lettuce, onions, carrots, celery, cabbage, white potatoes, eggs and sweet potatoes, tvp (textured vegetable protein, sometimes called textures soy protein - dry crumbles of defatted and baked soy beans that can be reconstituted with water - the granules make a nice ground beef substitute).
In general, the more work you do yourself, the more money you save (so chicken pieces are usually more expensive than whole chickins). There are exceptions though. Often chicken thighs or legs are less expensive than whole chickens because they're less "desireable" pieces (but they're often better than white meat in on the barbecue or in a crock-pot, because they stay moister longer). Walmart generally sell their baked rotisserie chickens for less than a dollar more than their raw whole chickens - that's nice, because it's convenient as well (which also shows there's an exception to every rule).
I've started adding recipes to my blog, and most will be pretty cheap, because hubby and I are on a pretty tight budget.
http://3fatchicks.com/diet-blogs/kaplods/
In many of the threads here I've talked about my tvp/ground beef recipe and I got so many requests for it, that I put it on my blog.
Recently, I made my tvp/ground beef mixture using a larger ratio of tvp than I've ever attempted in a mix before, I also used a lb of ground pork in the mix. Ground pork is a little fattier, which is why I chose to add more tvp (which is fat free) to bring down the overall fat content per serving. I used 1 lb of ground beef (80/20 at 2.89/lb, 1 lb of ground pork at 1.19/lb, and 4 cups (1 lb of tvp granules at 2.69/lb), and 2 (15 oz) cans of canned chicken broth (that I found on sale for .49 per can at a Big Lots type store).
Each cup of tvp is about equivalent to 1 lb of ground meat, but much lower in fat and calories, but by combining the meat and tvp, you can get meat flavor for just a few more calories than the tvp alone.
That makes about the equivalent of 6 lbs of ground meat, browned - a little over $1.00 per lb or $.25 per 1/4 cup serving (not counting the costs of seasonings).
It may seem crazy to make the equivalent of 6 lbs of ground meat for a household of two, but it takes only a few minutes more to make 6 lbs as 1 lb (as long as you have a big enough pot). , I freeze it in tupperware style containers or freezer bags and then stir or shake so that the mixture freezes into easily scoopable "crumbles."
I also recently bought a couple books from thriftstores and amazon.com on "ground beef" or "ground meat" recipes (the most expensive one cost me $5 with shipping). So I have tons of recipes that start with browned ground beef.
The nicest thing about having the tvp mixture on hand is that I cook once, and meals made with the mix are nearly as quick/easy as a microwave dinner. For example, I make sloppy joes by adding a low-sugar bbq sauce and microwaving (great over baked potato). I make "chili" by adding 1 can of any beans, drained to 1 can of diced tomatoes, undrained and/or a can of tomato soup and add a cup of the tvp mix, and then microwave in a bowl or heat in a pan. I make taco filling by adding salsa or adding chili or taco seasonings to the mix and microwaving or heating on the stove top.